Over the past eighteen years I have been creating multimedia solo performance and live art pieces.
The content of my work has grown from an autobiographical view of psychological and emotional life to a more curious mix of feminism, identity, gender, sexuality, and difference. I am concerned with portraying the human condition in my work. Human beings are so complicated and delicate and in a constant state of flux which is amazing, beautiful, tragic and grotesque at the same time.

My research interest as an artist in contemporary critical theory and psychoanalysis, is reflected by the content of my own work which has in the past focused on themes from Freudian hysteria and Foucauldian sexual transgession, to the performativity of gender (Butler), voyeurism and the gaze (Lacan; Mulvey).

My personas are live moving images; visual metaphors that question cultural norms and identities. These highly stylized personas are created by combining costumes, make-up, installation, dance and text, with historical content from different time periods and cultures. The result is a series of strikingly bizarre personae, which the audience encounters.

I use movement as a metaphor for my conceptual frame work. I continue to developing my research into my own movement vocabulary. My performances communicate with text of a poetic nature but also through movement, gesture, expressions, touch and eye contact. I feel that this is a more intimate way of interacting with audience members that affect people in a more instinctual way.

I am very concerned with the holistic aesthetic of the experiences that I create for my audience through live art. This includes creating installations that are almost always site specific and experienced on a one-to-one or intimate group basis. I develop highly aesthetic dream like atmospheres which the audience member enters into. As a performer I try to make it apparent that the participants are an integral part of this environment.

I have exhibited my works regionally, nationally and internationally. I have a successful record of accomplishment in my professional practice and have international standing as a Multimedia Performance and Live Artist, as demonstrated by my work being awarded various Arts Council of England grants, commissions and awards; as an individual artist, for collaborative projects, and as a platform organiser and education coordinator. As an artist and lecturer I was invitation to be the Key Note Speaker at the Feminism and Teaching Conference at Nottingham University in 2011.

My most recent artist research interests (2013-15) are personal as I was diagnosed with (ASD) Autism Spectrum Disorder five years ago. I went through a huge adjustment period where I tried to discover what was intrinsically “me” and what was due to my disability. I am still trying to figure this out. This lead to my research into ASD and the neuroscience behind it. I am interested in how non-nerotypical brains are different and ever resilient. I am currently in talks with academics at the University of Nottingham and Autism east midlands to develop several interrelated projects and workshops. The projects working title is Adventures of Super Aspie Girl. I would like to make two interconnected pieces of performance art on my own retrospective experience with ASD looking back at my life and experience with a new understanding. I would like to make a performance for stage and a one-to-one performance for this project. I want these works to comments on the human condition and something that all people could identify with as all my work has done in the past. It has taken me a long time to build up to this project as I did not want to make something that alienated anyone or made me the authority on ASD. This disorder affects individuals who are all unique and important. I would like to work in conjunction with and learn from other people with ASD. Ass part of my research for this project I aim to devise and develop a series of workshops titled Be your own Hero: where I work with children, teenagers and adult on the Autistic spectrum to design their own super hero costumes based on their special skills and interests. I would then create these costumes with them and develop a video piece if possible with willing workshop participant. This will add to my research and development towards the solo multimedia performance and one to one piece possibly in collaboration with workshop participants. Thirdly to create an creative academic output in collaboration with academics at Nottingham University to see how performance and live art can add to the academic debate around Autism Spectrum Disorder.

“Annette
Foster’s work draws on the imagery of fairy tales, Victoriana, de
Sade and the history of pornography. In performances that are theatrical,
intimate and unsettling, she explores sexuality, memory, voyeurism and
the hidden tensions of social interaction. Costumes are used to create
characters that suggest particular archetypes, values or emotional states.
The performing character, often exotic in appearance, acts as a channel
for the revelation of secrets and memories.”

Tim Harrison

Annette Foster

Education

2009-2011

PGCE Professional Graduate Certificate of education in Life Long Learning, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham

Art
History and General Art Studies, University of Washington,
Seattle, WA. USA

Teaching

2015- present

Nottingham Trent University, Art and Design Short course tutor,
Courses developed: Contemporary Self-Portrait: Fine and Digital Art; Digital Photography for 15-17 year olds, Unfolding: the science of art and design and Experimental Life Drawing and Painting.
Responsibilities include: To manage, design and run short courses and undertake associated administrative responsibilities. To carry out daily lectures and practical demonstrations in visual arts studies and digital photography.

2014-15

New College Nottingham, Contracted lecturer of Photography, Access to HE Art and Design Level 3
Responsibilities include: lectures and practical demonstrations in digital and darkroom photography, facilitation of weekly classes, student tutorials and assessment

2010-present

Course leader and lecturer Fine Art University of Arts London Diploma, New College Nottingham Responsibilities including, lecturers, practical demonstrations, facilitation of weekly classes, student tutorials, assessment, organization of student exhibitions, work placements and trips. enrolment and school liaison; participation in appropriate team and committee meetings; course management including interviewing and guidance, induction, assessment, retention and attendance, achievement and attainment of good examination results, student progress, placement and destination, monitoring, review and evaluation.

The Lace Market Gallery, New College Nottingham. Curator and facilitator of Nottingham’s only free exhibition space for emerging artists, designers and makers. This gallery is an exhibition space and for students and professional artists.Responsibilities include: running the gallery including liaising with artists, external curators, and college staff, facilitating student run exhibitions, marketing, and running opening events

2004-2007

Curator and Manger of Showroom: including The National Showroom and Trans-cabaret at Geisha Lounge A bi-annual artist run performance platform for emerging and more established live artists and performers in the UK, supported by Dance4 nd The Bonington Gallery, Nottingham, UK.
Responsibilities include: Organization and curation of a platform for performers in the UK. Duties also included programming, administration, marketing, promotion, ticket sales, postcard, poster, website and program design.

2004- 2007

Education
Co-ordinator, Future Factory at Bonington Gallery. Administers
and assist in the development and co-ordination of all education programmes
at The Bonington Gallery, that enhance and run alongside the exhibitions,
performance and events programme. This involves liaising with the
School and University staff as well as network with other organisations,
artists and the creative industries. This involves sourcing and applying
for funding for future and on-going projects, as well as monitoring
and evaluating all activity within the education programme for report
writing and data analysis.

Playing
in Public Spaces Manager, for the Performance Festival Weekend Break
a collaboration with Fierce. The Public, West Bromwich, UK.
Creation and Facilitation of a Series of Workshops, Lectures and Performances
for local college students to have artistic experiences with International
artists such as Gob Squad, Blast Theory and Sophia Clist’s project
Stretch

Research and Development of The Adventures of Super Aspie Girl. A solo multimedia performance looking at the human condition, identity, the senses, neuroscience and my own personal account of Autistic Spectrum Disorder. This project will include live art, dance, video, creative writing, costume design, object/prop making and installation. As part of the research and development for this project I will develop a series of workshops with children and young adults on the Autistic spectrum to design their own super hero costumes based on their passions and talents. All costumes will be handmade using various crafts such as appliqué, embroidery and sewing. If possible a video art piece and/or performance and live art piece will be made with some workshop participants.

The
Tic Tac Suit, and A.A.A (An Affected Appearance) for Art on the
Edge of Fashion, Arizona State University Art Museum, Tempe,
AZ. USA

Collaborative
Performance

June
2006

Shell,
Commissioned performance for an Installation by Susie McMurray, Pallant
House Gallery, West Sussex

May
2004

Showroom:
Performance and Response, Nottdance 2004,
Bonington gallery, Nottingham, UK Collaboration with 4 other artist
Simone Kenyon, Tina Carter, Phillip Henderson and Mel Kirkham. Simone
Kenyon and I facilitated weekly workshops for one month, where artist
create time based pieces and respond to each others work in the form
of time-based work.